Curious about maintaining optimal eye health? It’s a common inquiry we receive from our valued clients. As dedicated Kamloops Optometrists, we’re here to provide valuable insights.
Of course, one of the key recommendations is regular eye exams, and conveniently, you can easily schedule an appointment with us online if you’re in Kamloops, BC or surrounding cities.
But beyond that, there are additional steps you can take to ensure your eyes stay healthy. Feeling unsure where to begin? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.
Keep reading to find our top 7 tips for maintaining your eye health—from the perspective of our Kamloops Optometrists.
How to Maintain Your Eye Health
It doesn’t sound like a simple task, yet our vision and eye health are often taken for granted. As much as you don’t want to worry or bother with maintaining your eye health when they’re at their best, it’s so important to follow these tips.
If you do, chances are that you’ll be in better shape once your next eye exam comes up! And if anything unexpected comes up (which we always hope it doesn’t), you’ll be in a better spot to repair or fix if needed. You don’t have to get ready if you stay ready, right?
Okay, let’s get into our Kamloops Optometrist-approved top 7 tips for maintaining your eye health.
- Book regular eye exams
- Maintain a healthy lifestyle
- Maintain your blood sugar levels
- Don’t smoke
- Wear sunglasses
- Give your eyes a rest
- Wear protective eyewear
Book Regular Eye Exams
At Nicola Eye Care, these are conducted by an Optometrist or Optometric Assistant. An eye exam is an evaluation of your overall eye health. It’s used to assess the clarity of vision, detect potential eye disorders, and evaluate the overall health of the eyes. We’ll also want to know your family’s eye health history to determine if you’re at risk of developing any conditions.
During your eye test, our team will perform a series of tests to determine various aspects of your vision and eye health, including personal assessment, dry eye assessment with a Meibographer, refraction eye test, eye muscle coordination test, peripheral vision test, intraocular pressure management, slit lamp examination, dilation, retinal imaging, colour vision testing, and more.
At Nicole Eye Care, we offer eye testing for the whole family, so you can stop in and see us for our adult eye exams, kids eye exams, and senior eye exams. Generally, we recommend adults come in for a comprehensive eye exam at least every two years or more frequently if you have unique individual needs or risk factors.
Maintain a Healthy Lifestyle
Daily exercise, movement, and proper nutrition are incredibly important for your mental and physical health—as well as your eye health.
Being overweight or obese can lead to health issues and eye health issues. It can increase your risk of developing diabetes and other conditions that can lead to vision loss, like diabetic eye disease and glaucoma. If you’re having trouble maintaining your weight, we highly recommend speaking to your healthcare practitioner.
Maintain Your Blood Sugar Levels
At Nicole Eye Care, not only do we offer a multitude of eye exams and ways to measure your eye health, but we also offer diabetic eye exams.
Did you know that 90% of blindness caused by diabetes is preventable? By managing your blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol with the help of your healthcare practitioner, you will be more equipped to ward off diabetes.
Don’t Smoke
This is probably a given, yet we have to include it. It may not surprise you, but smoking does just as much harm to your vision as it does to your body. Research has linked smoking to an increased risk of developing age-related macular degeneration, cataracts, and optic nerve damage—all can lead to blindness.
Our stance: it’s best to quit or never start smoking.
Wear Sunglasses
Of course, they’re a major fashion accessory—we’ve got plenty to choose from at our Kamloops, BC clinic. But, if you’re buying the correct ones, they do more than make you look good.
When buying sunglasses, make sure you look for ones that block out 99-100% of both UV-A and UV-B radiation to protect your eyes.
Give Your Eyes a Rest
If you work in front of a computer or have a cellphone, you’re well aware of how a lot of time can tick by without you even noticing. Staring at screens all day is tough on our eyes, so it’s important for us to choose to let them rest actively.
We like the 20-20-20 rule: every 20 minutes, look away about 20 feet in front of you for 20 seconds. This short yet effective exercise can help you reduce eyestrain. Try it out, and let us know what you think!
If you’re looking for more tips on how to rest your eyes, download our free 10-tips for stress-free eyes guide!
Wear Protective Eyewear
Whether you play sports, are a big DIYer, or sit in front of a desk for work, protecting your eyes is important! This can include safety glasses, safety shields, eye guards, eyeglasses, and more. For sportswear and home improvement projects, most protective eyewear is made of polycarbonate, which is 10 times stronger than other plastics. It’s always better to be safe than sorry.
BONUS: Practice Eye Yoga
Yes, you read that right. Eye yoga is a thing, and here’s how you can practice it:
Incorporate simple eye yoga exercises into your daily routine to strengthen your eye muscles and improve focus.
One effective exercise is “palming”: gently rub your palms together to generate warmth, then cup them over your closed eyes without applying pressure. Relax in this position for a few minutes, allowing the warmth and darkness to soothe your eyes and alleviate tension.
Another exercise involves “eye rolling”: gently roll your eyes in a circular motion clockwise and then counterclockwise several times to improve circulation and flexibility. Regular practice of these eye yoga exercises can help relieve eye strain, reduce fatigue, and promote overall eye health.
Prioritize Your Eye Health
We hope this blog helped identify some great tips to follow from Kamloops Optometrists to maintain your eye health.
If you’re having difficulty with some of the steps, we highly encourage reaching out to your trusted healthcare practitioner.
If you need to book an eye exam or have questions about maintaining your eye health, we’d love to help you out! Come visit us in our Kamloops, BC clinic, or schedule an appointment with us.
We can’t wait to see you!